Texas Instruments Inc. has readied a high-performance RF synthesizer that maintains signal integrity for wireless infrastructure applications. The highly integrated TRF3761 RF synthesizer requires one-third of the board footprint compared to other modules, addressing manufacturers' growing demand for smaller, more cost-efficient base station solutions. In the past, base station manufacturers used customized modules that integrated phase-locked loop (PLL) devices with voltage-controlled oscillators (VCOs), buffers and passive circuitry. The TRF3761 eliminates the need for these modules by integrating their equivalent functionality into a single 6 mm x 6 mm chip that delivers performance equal to more expensive and larger modules.

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The TRF3761 is available at an extended frequency range of 400 MHz to 2.5 GHz and supports various 3G wireless standards as well as 2G and 2.5G, while delivering infrastructure-class phase noise performance. For example, at an output frequency of 1.9 GHz, the TRF3761 delivers -138dBc/Hz phase noise when measured at a 600 kHz offset, and noise floor of -160 dBc/Hz when measured at a 10 MHz offset. When operating at an output frequency of 900 MHz, the TRF3761 yields phase noise of -144 dBc/Hz when measured at a 600 kHz offset, and -160 dBc when measured at a 10 MHz offset.

The device continues to build on TI's RF portfolio for infrastructure applications such as quadrature modulators, the TRF3701/2 and synthesizers with the TRF3750. For developers evaluating and designing with the TRF3761, TI provides an evaluation module (EVM), software package and documentation for easy testing. Samples of the TRF3761 and the EVM are available.